Miranda Rights/Transcript
Transcript Text reads: The Mysteries of Life with Tim and Moby It is a dark evening. A boy, Tim, is in his living room, reading a newspaper. A police car pulls up outside. Its lights and siren are on. A car door slams. TIM: Oh, not again. Tim opens the front door. A police officer stands on the front porch, frowning. Next to her is a robot, Moby. Moby is handcuffed and frightened. TIM: Sorry, officer. I'll, uh, I'll try to keep him inside. The police officer unlocks Moby's handcuffs and leaves. MOBY: Beep. Moby holds up an envelope. Tim reads from a typed letter as the police car pulls away. TIM: Dear Tim and Moby, What is it the police are always saying when they arrest someone? From, Frances. TIM: In the U.S., when the police question someone, they first have to read them their rights, their Miranda rights. MOBY: Beep. TIM: You know, the little speech that starts with, "You have the right to remain silent"? Those few sentences tell suspects their Constitutional rights. Mainly, the right to remain silent and the right to a lawyer. An image show a person's lips sealed by a zipper. A second image shows a lawyer's briefcase. TIM: Those two rights are guaranteed by the Fifth and Sixth Amendments to the Constitution. An animation shows the United States Constitution. It zooms in on the Fifth and Sixth Amendments. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Where's the name Miranda come from? Well, in 1966 the Supreme Court decided a case called Miranda v. Arizona. An image shows the exterior of the U.S. Supreme Court. TIM: In 1963, Ernesto Miranda, a 23-year-old truck driver, was arrested on charges of kidnapping and sexual assault. An image shows Ernesto Miranda. TIM: He was questioned for two hours at the police station before he confessed to the crimes. An image shows Miranda being questioned in an interrogation room. He holds his face in his hands as a detective shouts at him. TIM: At his trial, he was sentenced to 20 to 30 years in prison. An image shows a judge sentencing Miranda. TIM: Miranda appealed his conviction, and the Supreme Court ruled, five to four, that his confession was coerced. An image shows the nine Supreme Court justices. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Coerced means forced, not just physically, but in any way. MOBY: Beep. Moby frowns. TIM: No, the police didn't beat Miranda up or anything. But the Court decided that his confession was as good as forced because he didn't know his Fifth and Sixth Amendment rights. The Supreme Court's Chief Justice, Earl Warren, wrote that just being locked in a police station without knowing your rights is coercive. An image shows Chief Justice Earl Warren. TIM: It's scary, and if you don't know that you are protected in a way, by the right to silence and a lawyer, it might change the way you answer questions and behave. An image shows Miranda being interrogated by a police officer. TIM: Because the Court found that his confession had been coerced, Miranda's conviction was overturned. An image shows Miranda in court, being released by a judge. TIM: And he was retried, this time without his confession being admitted as evidence. He was found guilty anyway, though, and ended up spending 11 years in prison. An image show Miranda behind bars. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Right. The Supreme Court wasn't deciding whether Miranda was guilty of the crimes he had been accused of. They were just deciding whether the police had violated his rights. An image shows the nine Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court. TIM: The Supreme Court's ruling in Miranda v. Arizona says that before police questioning begins, a suspect must be told that he has the Constitutional right to remain silent and the right to have an attorney present at any questioning. Text reads: You have the right to remain silent. You have the right to have an attorney present at any questioning. TIM: The suspect also has to be told that if he can't afford a lawyer, the state will pay for one. Text reads: If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you. TIM: If the suspect says that he wants to remain silent, the police have to stop questioning him immediately. Moby is in a police interrogation room. He is crossing his arms and refusing to speak to the police officer interrogating him. TIM: And if he says he wants a lawyer, they have to stop questioning him until a lawyer is present. A lawyer enters the room and stands between Moby and the police officer. Moby smiles. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Yeah, that's a good point. The police also have to make sure that someone who's been arrested and read their Miranda rights understands what they've been told. Many times, a police officer will specifically ask if the suspect understood the nature of the rights he was just warned about. An image shows Moby and the police officer in the interrogation room. A thought balloon containing a question mark appears over Moby's head. TIM: And people are not considered legally Mirandized, or informed of their Miranda rights, unless they provide a firm yes answer to this question. In some cases, a suspect may need an interpreter, say, if he doesn't speak English. Tim looks toward Moby. TIM: So, what did they pick you up for this time, anyway? MOBY: Beep. Moby shrugs. He hands Tim a piece of paper. Text on the paper reads: Citation. Tim reads the citation. TIM: Drinking gasoline directly from the pump. Yeah, I've seen you do that. MOBY: Beep. Moby belches and smiles.Category:BrainPOP Transcripts